Commentary

Kentucky Becomes Nation’s 27th Right-to-Work State

Bluegrass State first of several likely to pass such legislation in 2017

The Mackinac Center for Public Policy congratulates the commonwealth of Kentucky, which became the nation’s 27th right-to-work state over the weekend.

Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin, a Republican, signed the legislation Saturday after it sailed through the legislature during the week. Once the law takes effect, unions will no longer be able to have workers in the Bluegrass State fired for not paying them dues.

In addition to enjoying more freedom, Kentuckians should expect an improved economy, higher wages and more jobs as a result of right-to-work. Jim Waters, president of the Bluegrass Institute for Public Policy Solutions, wrote an article for The Richmond Register about the positive effects right-to-work has had on states that recently enacted it. He cited the Mackinac Center’s Director of Labor Policy F. Vincent Vernuccio:

Vincent Vernuccio of the Michigan-based Mackinac Center for Public Policy found:

  • Average wages in both Indiana and Michigan increased after right-to-work laws were passed.
  • Since Indiana became a right-to-work state in 2012, its average wage rose faster than West Virginia’s.
  • Between 2012 — when Michigan passed its right-to-work law — and mid-2015, incomes in Michigan rose more than 9 percent, which was faster than both West Virginia and the national average.
  • Between 2012 and 2014, average hourly wages rose by 56 cents to $19.94 in Indiana, 56 cents to $21.70 in Michigan but only 37 cents to $18.21 in West Virginia.

Voters in new right-to-work states have rewarded lawmakers who supported the change, Vernuccio told The Wall Street Journal. “The union’s bark is a lot worse than its bite when it comes to the election afterward,” he said.

He noted that after Michigan enacted right-to-work in 2012, the issue wasn’t a significant factor in Republican Gov. Rick Snyder’s 2014 re-election, and no Republicans who voted for the bill lost in the general election that year.

Kentucky could be the first of several states to pass right-to-work legislation this year, Vernuccio told The Huffington Post. “We may see up to 29 [states] before the spring,” Vernuccio said. “You’re definitely seeing a snowball effect, and more and more states are looking to give workers freedom.”

Missouri and New Hampshire are the next states likely to consider such legislation.

Read the full article in The Richmond Register.

Read the full article in The Huffington Post.

Read the full article in The Wall Street Journal

Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective.

News Story

Why Trade Schools Matter to Detroit

Detroit Public Schools has emerged from a fiscal crisis and a heated legislative debate with a new, locally elected school board. But it still faces the challenge of preparing students for the real world. 

In its academic performance, the district has been at the very bottom of the nation’s report card for years. Following a contentious debate in 2016, the Legislature set aside $665 million to pay off accumulated district debt and jump-start the district under a new name. Even so, the superintendent recently confessed to The Detroit News that it will take eight to 10 years for the district to show any academic progress.

But Detroit students and families can’t afford to wait that long. Many have escaped to another district or to a nearby charter school. Unfortunately, the number of high-quality seats is limited. Schools, including those in Detroit, need to redesign themselves. Not only should they prepare college-ready graduates, they also need to prepare career-ready graduates through skilled trade and technical programs.

Too often, students look for careers in industries that do not require a four-year degree, only to find themselves unprepared for these options once they leave school. Labor unions and local chambers of commerce regularly develop vocational education curriculums to fill the gap for those students. 

Between 2012 and 2014, about 1,200 Detroit Public Schools students signed up for trade schools, taking a class or two as an elective. Sadly, though, trade schools now find themselves empty due to a decline in enrollment and lack of exposure. 

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Detroit’s unemployment rate borders on 17 to 18 percent, not including people who have stopped looking for work. Further, Detroit has seen shortages over the last two decades in the areas of plumbing, welding, pipe fitting and carpentry. 

In particular, Detroit has the nation’s highest youth unemployment rate, meaning that the city’s young adults have less work experience when compared to those in other major cities. The Motor City faces a major problem if skilled jobs can’t be filled by Detroiters who attend schools, pay taxes and actually reside in the city. 

As the city attempts to rebrand itself, trade schools will offer an important option for all future Detroit graduates — whether they come from district, parochial or charter schools. Students need to be directed either to a college-ready curriculum or something that fills vocational openings. 

Organized labor, unable to take members for granted following the enactment of Michigan’s new right-to-work law, now has the opportunity to use vocational certification programs for preserving the next generation of members. Furthermore, an investment by laborers, welders, contractors, beauticians and other trades would complement Detroit’s workforce initiative, benefiting public education and restoring Detroit’s middle class. Students and low-income parents who might not have the money for the rising cost of college tuition have real options through trade schools.

But therein lies a problem. Detroit Public Schools and its leaders have struggled through years of corruption and declining enrollment. Oftentimes, the district’s schools have focused on equipping students for a four-year college track at the expense of real world experience: much-needed jobs in the skilled trades. 

Some initiatives have stepped in to make an impact. A partnership with the program Jobs with Michigan’s Graduates has moved the needle on equipping low-income students with employable skills, including those in the skilled trades. Lansing could play a supporting role as well. Incoming House Speaker Tom Leonard has identified the skilled trades as a key area for bipartisan legislative action. 

The reality is that some graduates may not seek a traditional four-year college track. Access to effective Detroit trade schools, then, matters if we want to give future Motor City workers a shot at success.

 

Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective.